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Monday, March 11, 2013

MISSING BARTENDER MAY BE IN CANAL: Sarah Majoras a victim of mistaken identity?

UPDATE 3/12/13: Majoras drowning "accidental" due to "veryhigh blood/alcohol levels at her time of death - case closed"(This discussion is ongoing and has been bumped up for ease of posting)UPDATED 2/17/13 - POLL QUESTION: Was Sarah Murdered?*Scroll side panel to vote, and comment section for all updates:BREAKING NEWS posted 2/1/13: Body ID'd as Sarah Majoras

With her customary cap, camouflage coat, leather boots, unisex eyewear and blue jeans, this short-haired bartender might've easily passed for a drunken youth, if you glimpsed her trudging home, hunched in the gripping cold of late January, at around three in the morning. She's been missing ever since then.

Divers resumed searching the canal near the Delaware River community of Lambertville, New Jersey today. Evidently convinced this is where they'll find the body of Sarah Majoras, 39, who disappeared shortly after leaving John & Peter's Bar where she'd bartended for 15 years.

Majoras was off duty for the evening; drinking with her friends and enjoying live music, which the pub is locally famous for. Afterward, at around two o'clock in the morning, she walked home and is said to have been just a few blocks shy of her residence when, in a 'Smiley Face Killer' scenario usually reserved only for intoxicated young males, she vanished without a trace.

If authorities are correct in their suspicions and Majoras did end up in the canal, then she would be the second hospitality industry worker from this particular region to mysteriously drown in cold waters in as many weeks.

On January 7th the corpse of Manuel Antonio Guevara, 26, was fished out of neighboring Watchung Lake. Tactical divers found him beneath a layer of ice near the lake-bottom. His shoes and wallet were recovered just a short walking distance from the lakeside restaurant where he was employed as a waiter.

Guevara's family had reported him missing the last week in December. So far there's been no ruling on the cause and manner of the young man's death, as police are still investigating.

More coincidences

If she drowned in the frigid morning hours without any witnesses, Sarah Majoras would also be the second resident of the virtually crime-free community of Lambertville to meet such an icy and bizarre fate.

In 2000, David Anderson, 31 years of age, was also walking alone in the wee small hours of the morning when he vanished and was later found dead in one of the nearby spillways.

Anderson's death was ruled an accident, but his friends, of which he had many, never believed it. They insisted his body could neither have entered nor drifted to the place it was found floating in.

They also said that the victim was super-cautious around the canal and river, whether sober or drinking, because he was deathly afraid of water and didn't know how to swim.

David Anderson was a very popular musician in this New Jersey/Pennsylvania border town, and he and his band played most of the local venues there because they cranked out great tunes and could really pack a place with customers.

One of his most frequent gigs was at...yep, you guessed it, John & Peter's.

That's were Anderson departed from--at three in the morning--when he was last seen alive.

Even more coincidences

Interestingly enough, both of John & Peter's pub-favorites, Sarah Majoras and David Anderson, took the same path on their journey homeward. And they also had the same destination in mind when each of them mysteriously disappeared: They were going to the house they shared with a guy named Adam Baker.

Baker was buddies with Anderson and reportedly the two roomed together, and he is also Majoras' live-in boyfriend of several years.

That ought to send up red flags for the authorities and strongly suggest to them that both victims did in fact make it back home and thereafterwent missing. But police claim these two cases "aren't related" and that Baker, who is currently not thought to be a suspect, is fully cooperating with investigators.

Sarah Majoras is described as five-foot-four and 140 pounds, with blue eyes, blonde hair, and a fair complexion. She disappeared in the early hours of January 26th, 2013 and was last sighted by surveillance cameras on foot at the intersection of Bridge Street and Lambert Lane in Lambertville.

Anyone with any information as to what happened to her after that, and/or her current whereabouts, is urged to call the Lambertville police at 609-397-3132, or the Hunterdon County Prosecutor’s Office at 908-788-1129, and ask for Detective Lacey.

(Any breaking news/updates in all 3 of the above cases will be posted below.)

UPDATE 1/30/13, morning: Parents of missing/drowned Lambertville resident, David Anderson, 31, who in 2000 went to the same person's home as Sarah Majoras was heading when he also disappeared, have spoken up about her case.

"It’s unbelievable. It’s really
eerie what’s happening. It does seem strange she [too] crossed the bridge and no one
knows what happened,” said Elizabeth Anderson. "This is
the same pattern," her husband Carl Anderson added.

The 'Find Sarah" Facebook-group administrators are, however, aggressively discouraging any active theorizing on that page. They are trying to keep everyone's attention and dialog focused on "finding Sarah alive" they repeatedly state, despite that officials from the local DA's office as well as police divers being active on the scene shows that this is by now considered a "recovery operation" with indications of foul play. (DA's don't usually get involved on the ground without suspecting abduction or murder.)

It's not unusual for a citizen's group to micro-manage a missing person's case on the mistaken belief that simply "talking positive" will bring about positive results. Unfortunately that rarely occurs, and cutting off public debate about a case can often result in thwarting the public's interest in it as well. Something which can make the crime trail grow cold in a hurry.

Discussion concerning foul play here is warranted since there is obviously a number of glaring similarities and connections in Anderson's and Majora's disappearances that are impossible to ignore and which will justifiably cause speculation in all quarters, including on the part of police.

On that note, people familiar with the Lambertville terrain are expressing themselves elsewhere on the web. The following individual observations are of interest to those actively sleuthing this case. Both comments concern the appearance of a parked vehicle at the intersection where Sarah Majoras was last seen which appears to suddenly turn its parking beams on, as if engaging its engine:

“When I saw the still and that SUV sitting there immediately
I thought of course thats a cop car! Thats where they always sat during my
college days! It really does look like a cop car. Its black in front and has
the white towards the back and there appears to be something on top of the
vehicle.”

“When these bars let out at 2am, there is always a heavy
police presence on the New Hope side as petty arguements break out among the 20
somethings however Ive never seen any real violence or fights, just drunken arguements.
There is also a heavy police presence on the Lambertville side as the police
often sit directly over that bridge and try to catch drunks coming over from
New Hope. Its quite common to see people pulled over in this short area between
the bridge and rt. 179 at this time of night.”

BREAKING NEWS - January 30th 2013, afternoon: Investigators reported that Sarah Majoras' leather boot has been recovered today from the ice on the Delaware River canal, near where she was last sighted on camera, and sources say a body has also just been retrieved matching Majora's description. No official confirmation as yet, but the vicitim is believed to be the missing bartender. The FBI is now fully involved in the Lambertville investigation. NOTE: at this time I am flagging the Find Sarah facebook site on new evidence: Visitors to that page should be aware that one or more of its administrators has a vested interest in the outcome of this missing persons inquest, bringing doubt on the integrity and impartiality of their entire online "search" effort there. One or more Find Sarah admins also appear to be not only deleting "speculative" comments from the facebook page in question, but also "dropping in" on similar online discussions actively taking place elsewhere. This attempt to thwart critical dialog and info-sharing is strange in a missing-person's case and, IMHO, the individual or individuals engaging in it are not acting in good faith. Please keep in mind that boyfriends and husbands are always the prime suspects in missing women scenarios, since, statistically speaking, abductions and/or murders are rarely ever perpetrated by strangers. This would now be especially true for Majoras' boyfriend, Adam Baker, who has had at least one other "dear friend" go missing and then die in the same manner. (That deceased friend and Majoras are also said to have been friends, by the way. Yet another evidentiary fact that has caused the Federal Bureau of Investigations to "speculate" apparently.)UPDATE JANUARY 31st 2013: The body retrieved yesterday from the canal in Lambertville has been formally identified as missing bartender Sarah Majoras. Her family was notified and autopsy and toxicology reports are still pending. Majoras was found in the same area of the canal as her friend David Anderson was 13 years ago. Both were coming from the same bar and going to see the same person when they disappeared and drowned. The FBI is still investigating Majoras' case, but local law enforcement agencies are already announcing her death a "tragic accident" even though full test results have yet to come in. Anderson's drowning in 2000 was ruled "inconclusive" in part because he had facial lacerations and other perimortem injuries not typical for water fatalities, yet for some unknown reason the authorities did not pursue an explanation as to his manner of death. The Bureau is currently reviewing that identical drowning now as well.UPDATE February 1st 2012:In a "tragic" rush to judgment, local law enforcement agencies are trying to push through a ruling of accidental drowning in order to swiftly close the Majoras death inquiry. Namely because they say they didn't note any significant injuries to the body. David Anderson's identical death 13 years prior is "not related" they still insist, and Adam Baker, a troubling link in both drownings, "has been ruled out as a suspect." However, the same
bar, the same hour, the same trek, the same canal area, the same destination, the same friend, the samekind of accident...thestatistical improbabilityof all this presents the
strongest hint of foul play. So detectives probing this matter are reminded that in all theorizing, "everything should be kept as
simple as possible, but no simpler." (Albert Einstein) Operating on a theory of Majoras' disappearance and drowning being merely an *accidental* coincidence with Anderson's in 2000 is obviously too simplistic.UPDATE February 5th 2013: Formal rulings on cause and manner of death as well as toxicology reports are still pending, but the police investigation into Sarah Majoras' disappearance and drowning is said to be ongoing. The Lambertville canal with suspected pathway Majoras took is shown in the image below. (Note that locals are emphasizing that there was significantly less snow and ice covering the water on the night that she vanished, and the canal area she's alleged to have "fallen" in is only about three feet deep.)

138 comments:

When Nick Wilcox went missing in Milwaukee and that bizarre and grosteque 7 foot statue 'mysteriously' showed up... I googled what I thought would be the most obvious clues for the next Smiley Face Murder.

I googled: "State sport logo blue coat" and other such things regarding that blue coat (most obvious thing and "You can't see what you're not looking for" so tried not to look too deep into it and analyze things. Whatever the clues are, it is what it is on surface level). Everything I googled for 'clues' regarding that statue came up to Delaware. Then I didn't want to post anything and seem like I was 'crazy' or 'obsessed' or like some of those goofballs out there. I've seen some really intense postulations. While some things seem to be planned, I think a lot of it is coincidence that just kind of 'pans out' to certain speculations once things are tweaked a bit. Whatever is happening is much more straight forward than that, but we're just not seeing it. I think you should take all the true Smiley Face cases, put them together with everything you've got as clues and give it to Mensa. THEY will figure it out. We are missing something very simplistic. I can't put my finger on it, but I KNOW I'm missing something and I think the hammer is the 2nd clue to a following murder. But I can't find anything to go with a hammer. I know someone posted that "a local artist came forward" regarding this statue, but I haven't found anything supporting that. Not a word. And I'm from the Milwaukee area.

Now in this case... John & Peter's Bar... who are John and Peter? I'm just asking a question, but are they BROTHERS? They may or may not be, but it would be interesting to find out.

And Adam Baker... What's his story? What's his family history and background?

That right there has a big red circle around it with a red flag flying in the center.

But this seems to be a sleepy little, crime-free Small Town and you have to understand small towns... I live in one. When I reported and recorded the drive-thru Crack House I could see out of my window... I was told to "mind my own business." I took matters into my own hands and bypassed my entire county - which led to insane harrassment, they even towed my vehicle for no reason! And most of those A-holes were out there in civilian clothes laughing and joking it up and had my vehicle towed nearly 2 towns over when if it REALLY needed to be towed for some reason as it sat parked... it could've gone to the towing station a block away.

I also have photos of our Chief of Police allowing a drug dealer to REMOVE all his Oxy's and other pills from his trunk after a car accident BEFORE an 'investigation' began.

Of course, the Police Chief shook the kid down for money to 'cover' for his drug dealing. It is a common practice in our town. I reported it, but nobody cares. The people I reported and agencies outside of my county had Dead to Rights GOT PROMOTED. That's how Small Towns work.

If Lambertville is a Quaint, Little, Small Town with basically ZERO crime... ain't nobody gonna step forward to change that perception. Around here, at least, officers have their jobs threatened if they 'step out of the box'.

And if Adam Baker grew up in this town and has long term alliances... he's Doubly covered - even if some members of LE knows what he did.

That's how Small Towns work.

Someone from the outside needs to get in there and look into this. 2 'mysterious' deaths linked to the same guy? Either call the FBI or contact State authorities. Local LE have a conflict of interest.

UPDATE on February 17th: For those of you following the Majoras and Lambertville drownings investigation, I've set up a quick anonymous opinion poll on the side bar to the right of the page. This one will only be up for 30 days though, so don't forget to cast your vote before you exit the site today!

Hey, Anonymous January 30th -- not sure if you follow the weblog via e-mail but, just in case, I'm putting through this comment just to PING you that the post itself contains an update that's relevant to some of your recent remarks above.

(I think you and I were clicking the 'publish' button at the same time this morning--you owe me beer!)

Cops and f.b.i says there is no problem, but they immediately start looking in the water when someone comes up missing. Anyone notice the hypocrisy here? Anyone ever notice the smiley face was also used by serial killer Keith Jeperson also known as the Happy Face Killer and the scrambled message at another site was identical to the zodiac killers signature. I find that to be interesting.

@ Anonymous January 31st: The FBI landed in Lambertville just yesterday. Because they don't descend on a community at the slightest of whims, that implies there is indeed a major criminal investigation currently underway.

It is not likely they are investigating a theory of a serial killer though, as the time between Anderson's death and his friend Majoras is too entended (13 years) and thus far there are only these two known missing/drowned victims, with a connection to only one specific individual.

The FBI may, however, be there to also oversee local LE agencies, on the fear that otherwise the matter will be whitewashed again.

I add that last word "again" because the autopsy on the 2000 drown victim (Anderson) led to an 'inconclusive' ruling on his manner of death, due to facial lacerations and other perimortem injuries not commonly associated with water fatalities. In short, it was never judged to be an accident, but they didn't determine exactly what happened to him, nor did they pursue the answer, as required by law.

Statements by the District Attorney regarding Majoras' identical disappearance and drowning--from the same place, in the same area of the canal, heading for the same destination--as being a "tragic accident" are premature and to be taken with a grain of salt.

Suffice to say there are various reasons why he might be asserting such a thing at this early stage in the *game*.

I think, instead of an online petition regarding the Majoras/Anderson deaths, that anybody who's similarly lost a son or male relative should be contacting the FBI now as well. Especially those in cluster zones like Milwaukee (etceteras) where drowning men seem to happen every month in the wintertime.

But if anyone does do this, I implore you to just report the facts to your FBI contact, and omit all the unproven speculations and theories that cloud these matters. In short, if your young man was last seen alive being manhandled by bouncers or cops, and those individuals have since "left town" tell them that. They'll know what it means. Don't baffle them with assumptions and pure conjecture.

All eyes are on this current disappearance and drowning in NJ because it involves a woman. But the events are the same, so now is the time to act. There are many more men, nee exclusively males, perishing the same suspicious way, and the Bureau needs to be made aware of this and take over their death inquiries ASAP. These aren't being conducted honestly by local law enforcement and their coroner friends, which the FBI would see at a glance if their attention could be drawn to all these unsolved cases.

This is becoming an absolute insult to the below average intelligence. Rox...I am the one who asked you to visit the justice4eric.com sight. This isn't just happening in midwestern or northeastern states...It is everywhere. Mainly portland,oregon. ERIC,same exact thing. The family had to identify him by his tattoos,cell phone,gone....I could go on and on. You requested an interview with the family and I don't know if they have gotten back to you...they are leary of anyone at this point in their lives. Especially how they were treated by local LE. If you got to the justice4eric.com page...the last page,you can email them...I urge you to do so.

Well said E.R., I live in Lambertville and this whole thing stinks. The idea that even one person could fall in the canal and die like this is hard to swallow. I walk and bike those canal paths all the time, and I can tell you it's highly unlikely she walked along the canal that night to get home. The path there was likely covered with ice and very poorly lit. Nobody walks that section of the path at 2AM, I wouldn't even do it. If she did though, and fell in, the banks of the canal are shallow, she could have called for help yet nobody heard anything?

She lived about 6 blocks or so up Union street which is a well lit street with sidewalks. And how did her boot come off? They already found that the water could not have removed the boot. But to add that the same exact episode happened 12 years prior is no coincidence, those kind don't exist. I really hope they keep investigating this. Lambertville is a big tourist town, I would not be surprised if local LE were rushing to "tragic accident" cause to not scare away the tourists.

Brian, I completely agree. It is just too pat with accident answer coming so quickly. Something is not right here. When putting together all we know for fact? It's too much to ignore. It needs a complete investigation. This town seems to be shutting down with information being cut off. Shutting down fb pages, People not talking and defending AB at all costs. It seems really odd to me.

well le has evry one keeping quiet about the details of the victim behind last call bar as if they take it seriously that it may have not been an accident but seem to take a different tone with the media. Apparently he was found near the creek way out behind the bar so is unlikely he just stepped out for a smoke. people are saying he was murdered but not giving details of the extent of injuries or why they believe that. I believe there was video from the security cameras but like always I doubt it will be compared with footage from other bars.

Brian from Lambertville, thanks so much for dropping in today--glad to hear from a resident who's not a part of the clique currently trolling online crime forums and trying to silence reasonable case discussions taking place in them.

As to that, I'm always doubly more suspicious when I see people attempting to quash debate, especially when they use words like "airtight alibi" and "so he couldn't have done it", etc. ("Done" what? one naturally can't help but to then ask.)

Myself, I'm just objectively looking at this unusual drowning event in terms of statistical probabilities. Apparently there's only been two such identical ones in your town over the past 12-13 years, both linked in a host of ways to the same individual, Adam Baker.

So then, which is more statistically probable: That these numerous connections to him are all just a coincidence...or that they are not?

I'm sure the FBI is viewing it no differently. They rely on crime stats to inform their investigations and, frankly, the numbers they'd be studying right this very minute are just not falling on Baker's side. There has to be AT LEAST a million to one odds against two separate drownings occurring to two people who were close friends, and who fell in the same canal area, at the same hour, using the same path, after leaving the same bar, where they both worked, and heading for the same place, to see the same indiviudal.

These bizarre commonalities alone would necessitate exhaustively exploring the working theory that neither premature death was an accident.

I hear that Baker is a local in the area, as opposed to a transplant. As a resident yourself, you might be able to honestly answer this next inquiry: Do you know if he has any familial (or other) ties to the police department and/or local government?

That could explain a lot, if he does.

Again, thanks for your valuable insight. If there's been a crime in your small community then it's in everyone's best interest to apprehend the perpetrator. Even if it's a popular and well liked individual.

I too am also a resident of Lambertville and think something other than "tragic accident" is going on here. I personally have walked those canal paths drunk in the way home and in the winter and gave never even come close to falling in.Brian us correct. Even thought the canal is 10+ feet deep in some spots, that is in the very middle and the canal has very shallow banks before sloping into the deeper parts. Even if someone were to fall in you just stand up in knee deep water at the deepest. That is unless a head injuryis involved.Besides that it was a very cold night. Why would some one want to take the long way home on a potentially dangerous dark path next to a body of water in the middle of the night? If its that cold I would want to take the direct route and get home as soon as possible.I walked that length of canal path today and followed from where she was found to where she was thought to have went in. They were no signs of vegitaton being disrupted as the banks along that path are mostly covered in vegetation that would show obvious signs of disturbance if some one fell in. Also the distance between where she supposedly she went in and where she was found is a distance of around 6-7 blocks in a canal full of debris. Now the current in that canal is no joke, I do not see how she could have made it that distance in a matter of a few day with out being snagged on all the shopping carts, automotive bumpers, bikes and curious other debris I KNOW is in that canal. How did her boot end up on top of the ice where she was found if she went in a good distance away.I think she was dead before she found her way into the canal and the local police are trying to sweep it under the rug so as to not attract any negative attention and to save money from any further investigation.

"Also the distance between where she supposedly she went in and where she was found is a distance of around 6-7 blocks in a canal full of debris. Now the current in that canal is no joke, I do not see how she could have made it that distance in a matter of a few day with out being snagged on all the shopping carts, automotive bumpers, bikes and curious other debris I KNOW is in that canal. How did her boot end up on top of the ice where she was found if she went in a good distance away."

I completely agree with this. I just feel like the information is being so manipulated to suit the outcome, Rather then the outcome fitting with the real evidence.

I have to agree, all is not meeting the eye here in terms of this "tragic accident" business and the speed with which they're packaging and selling it to the public.

Examining pictures of the place (some taken within only a few hours after she supposedly fell in that show a completely undisturbed canal and walkway) I doubt that such a savvy woman would go anywhere near that secluded path at that hour.

And one would think she'd also naturally have a cautious attitude about the canal in general, since she'd already lost a good friend in it years ago.

My own developing theory is that each of these two victims made it to where they where headed, saw something they shouldn't have once they arrived, and instantly met up with foul play as a result.

I'm still digging, though.

By the way, I didn't realize there was that much junk in the canal--you're correct then, it's odd her body would have been carried by the current that far with so many obstacles preventing it. Especially since the corpse hadn't even refloated yet.

Any other area insight and info you can furnish us with will be, and is, greatly appreciated!

If you look at the pictures taken the night she was walking on the bridge it appears that the car on the left is a police car, also there looks like a person on the roght side of her as she is crossing the street, has anyone else seen this?

Yes I noticed the vehicle as well. Mentioned it to a detective that it was unusual to see a vehicle parked there at that time and that the headlights came on Just as sarah reached the sidewalk. He dimissed it saying it was a bridge commission officer?Was he or sheinterviewed? I felt he was saying they were exempt from interst because it was a bridge commission employee? Where did that vehicle go after sarah went down lambert la?

And this was not a quiet night!There were manypeople around towns lville and new hopewere setting up for winter festival.My friends weredriving over the bridge at 2:15 or so to lambertville station,bridge commission workers wereout putting up signs etc. Andthe police who are always waiting at the bridgefor people to cross,where were they?Would like to see more video.

I am a transplant myself from only 2 years ago. All I can find out about Baker is that he is from here, although there is no record online about him anywhere, not even a white pages listing. One of my neighbors is "close" to Adam according to his wife, however I don't know him well enough to start asking him questions. I would not be surprised if Adam knows multiple police officers here. This is a town of only 3,000 people and everyone knows everyone, especially if you grew up here. And yes, I also find the coincidences to be deeply troubling, but even without the link to the same person, none of this adds up. In my research, I have not found a single case of anyone, anywhere along the D&R canal that drowned from falling in. Every drowning case in at least the last 20 years has been a boating accident. A few points:

1. As both Anonymous and I pointed out, and I walked that canal section again this morning, if she had fallen in, she would simply be standing knee deep in water if she broke through the ice.

2. The path where she supposedly fell in is about ten feet wide with a stone retaining wall along the edge of the water. She would have to be literally walking on the stone wall in order to slip in, which again makes no sense since she could have walked on the opposite side of the stone wall if she had taken the canal path.

3. To be clear, the canal does have a current, it is about the same as the river, which is 2-3 mph. Her body was supposedly found near Lambertville station, which is only 1-2 blocks south of the supposed entry point. There is a boom that is designed to catch debris at the spillway just south of Lambertville station which I assume is where they found her. This is the same spillway where Mr. Anderson was found. I suspect they chose not to mention this and instead said she was found near the lock. However, there is no lock there, just the boom and spillway. If she had slipped and fallen in the canal the logical first place to search would be at the exact place she was found.

Also, after Sarah disappeared, it has been noted that Adam waited until the following day at 2PM to notify police. Based on varying reports, some say he called the bar looking for her, then the story changed to: He called people from the bar looking for her. On the website Blink on Crime, one commenter calling himself "AJ" posts this:

"Anderson’s death was considered an accident. He was intoxicated and likely fell in the canal. Everyone here knows each other and as someone close to the case I truly believe it is just a sad coincidence. Adam called the bar that night when she didn’t show at home, he and friends and coworkers of hers checked her route and called around immediately after (these are close friends of mine) and then contacted police. He didn’t “wait around” to do something. As for her not breaking the ice? The ice was very thin in places and actually there was a case recently of two teens that fell in and were carried UNDER the ice far downstream where their bodies were eventually found. Obviously we are hoping she is NOT in the water and that we can find her alive somewhere but it’s not inconceivable that this is simply a tragic accident."

So, he called the bar? When? It closes at 2AM which is why she was in Lambertville at 2:15. Then AJ says "he and friends and coworkers checked her route and called around immediately after and then contacted police" So they checked her route, which would take about 20 minutes or so, and then immediately called the police? This is obviously a lie because police where contacted nearly 12 hours after she disappeared. Then AJ goes on to try and "prove" Sarah fell through the ice (why?) and mentions the two teens that drowned in Budd Lake near Mt. Olive NJ last month. Hard to see any similarity there since the boys were biking across the lake when near the middle the ice broke and they fell through. This is quite far from any residential area however and yet according to one article:

The boys’ chilling screams brought help, but rescuers were unable to locate the pair in the darkness.

In the October 2000 article from the Philadelphia Inquirer Oshrat Carmiel quotes David Anderson's friends. Bob Coshland, who now lives in California even created a website called "The mysterious case of David Anderson" which unfortunately is no longer up. He says in the article: "There are a lot of questions about what happened, and a lot of those questions are really unanswered," Coshland said. From the article:

"The questions emerged as friends, in town for the funeral, congregated at the spillway, a forceful 15-foot release of water from the canal into a small pool that feeds into the Delaware River.

They waded in the placid pool, stood on the towpath bridge above it, and tossed debris into the water so they could watch how it floated, said Dwight Altier, 32, of Pipersville, another high school friend. They wanted to see for themselves whether Anderson could have just fallen in. But each time, he said, the currents carried debris way into the river; none was trapped in the pool where Anderson was found.

Also in question is access: The part of the pool where his body lay can only be reached from a darkened parking lot behind a shuttered Acme market.

"The big question is, 'How did he get here?'" Altier said, standing in the lot and staring down the ledge.

Lambertville police reported that Anderson had several facial lacerations of unknown cause."

How indeed did he get there? Most of David's friends were very confused as to what happened except one. This person seemed to be convinced that David fell in. He is quoted in the same article:

"There's just a gut feeling everybody has about it," said Adam Baker, 31, a friend...."Whenever you would walk with him along the canal, he would always stay on the far side of the canal, against the hedge," Baker said.

It seems that Mr. Baker is insinuating that David fell in and drown, apparently his extreme fear of water led him to walk close to the edge late at night while drunk, that makes sense, right?

The pictures of her crossing the bridge are haunting, and the car sittting there looks like it might have parking lights on it, maybe a police car? I do see something by the telephone pole that could be a person, I would think these pictures would be shown more to see if anyone saw anything! Also again her boot is found, in many of these cases, a shoe is found and then the body is found, how did her boot come off? Were they tied boots? Zipper? I wish we knew more but it seems like everyone wants this to be accepted as an accident! It makes no sense at all.

This seems to be the norm where there are unanswered questions. Questions of access,doubts about just how drunk the victim was, items found on land where a struggle may have taken place. A case where a young man was sleeping in a truck and the window was smashed. Bruises or ligature marks that were missed during autopsy. Bruises on knuckles as if a fight took place. ect ,ect. Some would say where are the men with signs of foul play and the answer is obvious. They are missed or attributed to being caused while body was in the water. The question should be if the initial suspicions that there was no foul play is correct, where are the independent experts with no ties to local law enforcement that will back up their take on how the victim died, where the bruising took place,the blood alcohol content of the victim, or how long the body was in the water? They do not seem to exist.

The boot was a lace up--the canal is only a couple feet deep where they say she fell in?!

I hear the FBI is still poking around though, right? How large a presence do they have? A pair of agents...or more?

Wherever they're doing their work, the statistical probability of both disappearances and drownings being linked and the product of foul play will keep the Bureau intrigued and calculating for awhile. Until they're satisfied one way or the other.

Those odds won't be influenced much by the autopsy findings either, since they well know some perps can make a murder look like an accident.

(But not twice in the same place, usually. Or at least not without a little help from the inside, which the Bureau may also be eyeballing.)

As residents of Lambertville begin processing this now-familiar canal tragedy then more and more of them will come to suspect it, because one doesn't have to be a math whiz to know something's not adding up right.

Also, I am eavesdropping on a few of the dialogs in progress that you've mentioned and have a hunch those new troll accounts busily espousing Baker's "innocence" all over the web, and and "his airtight alibi" and how "he's been cleared" by local investigators, are in fact Baker himself.

Bereaved, not hardly. Nutter, a very strong possibility.

However, the trusted members of those sites are handling this odd scene in an apt and admirable manner: keeping the trolls calm and fully engaged.

Personally, I'm betting Majoras' manner of death will be 'undetermined' just like Anderson's was. The delay in the release of these results may be due to that she had no water in her stomach or lungs, requiring a deeper probe of the cadaver.

And, finally, I predict clique unity will disintegrate soon, as people within Majoras' tight circle of friends find they must now decide who they are more loyal to: The living or the dead.

Great to hear from Lambertville today. I thank you for dropping by--E.R.

Nevertheless, I was able to glean the gist of the data OK. Coupled with other readers' observations regarding the shallowness of the canal, the amount of debris normally clogging it, the unlikely path athletic Majoras would have had to take in order to "slip and fall" in it, plus the fact her body had not even ascended yet...lots of suspicious indicators, for certain. (No doubt why suspicions are growing in the wake of this second, nearly-identical drowning in Lambertville.)

It's often said that, if you can figure out the motive for a particular murder, you can more easily identify who the murderer is...

Let's go with the evidence then that so far supports a supposition of foul play in both Majoras' and Anderson's deaths: Anybody want to hazard a guess as to what the motivation might be for these two slayings?

In the meantime, I'm going to try to add to the blog-post above an interesting photo I found of the canal area in question. Doesn't look to inviting, by the way, and I also heard that it was the scene of an assault in 2010. Add that to the fact a friend had already drowned there and it seems specious to claim Majoras would have taken that route in the dark, at that hour.

To comment on the picture you posted, no it wasn't completely frozen on that night, but check out this link pictures #9 and #10. It seems the six feet or so on each side of the canal was frozen solid and they in fact used this ice to set their ladders to climb down.

OK, Brian, I corrected the canal conditions for other readers not familiar with your locale, and will try to screen grab a picture closer to the actual date ASAP.

I know you're worried that this suspicous disappearance and death will be brushed under the rug as the other one in 2000 seems to have been. But I think not, because the math rules on this matter now, whereas before there was just Anderson's inexplicable case to ponder.

Tox and autopsy reports are not going to change that math one iota, either--it is virtually impossible that these two drownings are not somehow connected, regardless of whether both victims had been drinking to excess (which I doubt) or not.

That's the beauty of numbers; they're unbiased reporters. And when they come this close to painting a certainty, equally unbiased investigators will not just shrug them off.

I also think there's only a small but vocal minority shouting "coincidence" and that will begin to dwindle off...shortly.

This is a simple math drill that even elementary-age children can comprehend, so it doesn't make sense for anyone to be insisting either death is an "accident" at this point. These drownings are inextricably linked, and foul play must be ruled out for them BOTH now, which would takes months at least, considering all the factors that have to be fully explored.

QUESTION: Can you tell me more about the "blood on the sidewalk" issue I read about in earlier accounts which has since been purged from the news coverage? I heard that local LE declared it "was an animal's" but that was before the FBI landed. What do your fellow residents have to say about this? Where was the blood found? How much? (Etceteras!)

i am a local. i saw the blood spots as did some of my friends. by the time i saw it, which was i think two days after it was first noticed, it was very hard to see. no one that i know haerd that the blood was near sarah's house. the furthest north i heard of there being blood was a york st. (the blood was all on union st, from what i understand.) i have heard that it was reported as animal's blood, but i also heard that the police told someone involved with the search that it couldn't have been sarah's blood b/c it was too fresh when it was found - no mention of animal blood in that one. i don't know what the final answer was on that.

i have also heard that the canal attack was not actually an attack. it's recently been reported that the woman made up the story to avoid word getting out about her domestic violence issues at home.

Thank you for the info. I should hope that police tested the blood before dismissing it as "too fresh to be Sarah's" since in sub-freezing temperatures blood isn't likely to decay very fast!

Union Street is where Majoras was aiming and lived according to reports, (please correct if mistaken) so where in relationship to her address did you see these traces?

BTW: That's what I heard about the 2010 canal path attack as well. I think, however, real or faked, the tale would still have instilled a bit of fear about wandering that area at night or alone. Especially for women.

Meaning, I disbelieve a sensible person like Majoras would have walked there at that hour.

i heard that the police were going to test the blood, but i don't know if they did or what the results were.

w/o revealing any info that could endanger sarah's or adam's privacy, i will say that the blood i saw was many blocks, a 1/2 mi or so, from sarah's house. if there was blood any closer to her house, i didn't see it.

the 2010 attack on the canal, real or not, was well outside of town. many locals use the canal, the in town portion of it, regularly - alone or not, at night or not. however, i don't think, given what's been reported about sarah's normal path and her aversion to the canal, she would have walked on the canal alone, late at night, under slippery and dangerous conditions. so i agree with you.

i do not think adam baker had anything to do with this. and i genuinely think that any locals who are posting requests to not speculate about him are doing it out of love and empathy. if there was a crime here, i think all locals would want to know about it. i am very concerned about the coincidences in this case, and i would not be surprised if there has been a crime. (if the person who responded to today's post asking for private communication with you provides any info, i hope you or he/she will be able to share at some point.)

i also wonder about the person who was found near the canal spillway in 2006, also on his way home from a bar, though a different bar. the few reports i've seen on that say he died in flood waters, but that doesn't make much sense.

Why do some assume Adam Baker is innocent? What kind of person is Adam? Does anyone know him personally? If my girlfriend went missing I wouldn't call at 2pm the next day. I'd be up in the middle of the night calling the police and if by for some odd reason I was overly exhausted I'd call first thing in the morning. That is a huge red flag in this whole case. I never knew Sarah as many have posted in these forums but I am a regular to the New Hope area. The authorities are foolish to publicly announce this as an accident, it really debates their credibility and intelligence. I've been by those canals and you do not just slip and fall in, it's simply a cover up theory to keep the community at ease in my opinion. Does anyone have any inside information on the investigation?

First, last night as I was looking at maps and Sarah's bio and whatnot, it dawned on me that, even if our individual theories clash, we are all making the same assumption: We are assuming that police showed us the very last surveillance image available of Majoras on her final journey homeward.

I now doubt that is the truth.

As to accident: The county is trying to rule the manner of her death as accidental, even though officials have yet to formally announce if the cause of death was even drowning. (Majoras' body was after all found "at the bottom" of the canal, so...what explains the delay in telling the public what she actually died of...?)

As to murder: There were no substantial injuries they say; no defensive wounds; no signs of a struggle or calls for help heard anywhere along the route they believe the victim took that night, which they're insisting was the treacherous tow path, believe it or not.

Many people in fact do not believe it, locals included. In fact, most everyone rejects the "extraordinary string of coincidences" theory completely. There being too many in this drowning and the one in 2000 to chock it all up to chance.

Officials did search another residence owned by Majoras in another state, by the way. They seem to have found nothing important or amiss there.

Look, I'm getting blowback all over because I'm asking what type of work Adam did, as it was said he did his work on the night she went missing. Noone is giving me answers, thus this bein the only place I could think to come to get answers????? Please help I'm at wits end....

Why do you say the images are not the last ones of Sarah? Are there more that you know of? I personally think that it is suspicious that theses photos were not shown more! There is a car parked there , did they find the owner?mor is it a police vehicle which I suspect? Alot of these cases have bouncers, police cars, shoes found at sights in common! It is reallyscary and I wish someone would continue to search for common threads! Wtf happened to Gannon and Duarte?

@ Anonymous Feb.9th: Adam Baker owns/operates a trucking and moving business. Not incidentally, the FBI has recently flagged this particular industry as attractive to roaming serial killers---over the past decade or more there have been many murder/dismemberments perpetrated along the nation's major routes, most of which remain unsolved to date. Thus authorities are now warning motorists that highway safety in this era includes extra caution at rest areas and pull-overs.

Not saying Baker himself is a serial killer, OF COURSE, just providing info that could lend some insight as to why the FBI (and their profilers) might be so interested in these two Lambertville drownings, and why some folks may seem reluctant to identify the man's profession.

@ Anonymous: I am suggesting there are more images of Majoras walking home than the police want the public to see for two specific reasons:

1. They only released still photos of video-feed which do not show the fateful trek itself. In those video stills there looks to be a cop car staking out the bridge on the Lambertville side and, as Majoras crosses in front of the cruiser, its lights go on as if its engine was engaged...likely then there is/was at least dash-cam footage of what happened next.

2. On May 12th 2009, at approximately two in the morning in Lambertville, Sarah Majoras was arrested for driving an unregistered and uninsured vehicle. She refused to take a sobriety test, but the patrolman insisted he smelled alcohol and so she was additionally charged with "drunken and reckless" driving...

RE: the car on bridge st seen in the stills from the bridge cam, i would say that is one of the local taxi vans. i've seen it there before. i would also say that the lights we see are not in fact that car's lights going on, but the reflection of a car coming across the bridge.

i agree that there must be other surveillance video that has not been released/mentioned, b/c otherwise we have no proof that sarah went down lambert lane. she could have just as easily turned to go up bridge st to union. however, i heard second hand that someone who works at finkle's said their cameras don't show sarah at all. from what i can tell of their cameras, one points south on the canal and is mounted just south of the coryell bridge. the other points east on coryell and is mounted just east of the coryell bridge. i think there are also cameras on the finkle's warehouse, but i think they're back toward the parking lot at the end of lambert lane, rather than near the coryell bridge.

i suppose, though, that if no cameras caught sarah after the bridge cam, that would make sense that LE focused so intensely on the area near where coryell crosses the canal. however, unless sarah actually walked onto the towpath there, it makes no sense that she could have fallen in. and, again, if no more footage, how do we know that she even actually took lambert lane?

According to the Hunterdon Co. Prosecutor's press release, Sarah's flashlight was found on her body ... now, if you go to the trouble to carry a flashlight, wouldn't you use it if you decided to walk the towpath? To me that suggests that she either didn't make the choice to go near the water on her own (anonymous foul play), or met someone else she knew -- a second set of eyes -- who suggested they walk the path together.

For the record, I am a longtime resident and know the area well. I don't believe in this kind of coincidence. This whole thing makes me sick, and in thinking about it, I have come to realize lots of people live with unsolved crimes everyday.

Also, in reply to some things said earlier, the canal is deep (6-8 feet in the middle) and the current is surprisingly strong (I've canoed in the canal). No matter how she wound up in the canal, once she was under, she would likely move quickly, and it would be hard to know where/how to come back up, esp. if ice was covering the surface.

Walkers know to carry a flashlight at night to warn drivers who may not see them that they are there. Carrying a flashlight on one's person does not signify an intent to go to a remote or darkened area.

I keep pondering the maps and photos and still remain truly stumped as to why Sarah would have taken the roundabout route that police are claiming she did...

Why wouldn't she just walk straight across the bridge onto North Union Street, where in fact she actually resided?

Or was she rendezvousing with someone maybe? Say at the backside of Bell's Tavern...?

Indeed, the whole matter is curious: You have three individuals in roughly a decade who go missing after leaving a bar/restaurant on foot...they're all in their 30's...they're ALL HEADING HOMEWARD TO NORTH UNION STREET in Lambertville NJ...they all end up drowned in the downtown waterway system.

My point about the flashlight was, that if she did take the towpath alone, she would probably have used it. Everyone is pointing to a specific dark puddled area where they think she fell in. Flashlight in pocket? To me it makes this "fall" scenario less likely.

As to the route, it's just the kind of thing you do when you walk a route frequently. I weave from Bridge, to Lambert, to Coryell all the time, walking and driving. As a resident, I tend to avoid the central business district for lots of reasons (e.g., in a car, you avoid the light).

Also, I don't recall the Groth incident. Do you have more information on it?Marie

Ooops, apologies if I sounded curt--really didn't mean to. I was attempting to succinctly address the flashlight issue in general, since there are numerous debates about its bearing on this case. Agreed though: if the item was in Majoras' pocket then it doesn't seem likely she was trekking someplace dark where she would need it.

And, again, I'll reiterate that having a flashlight could have been solely for warning motorists that she was walking on the road, as opposed to proof that she intended to go somewhere unlit. (Just an observation from a former runner, walker, biker, etc., who didn't rely on reflectors alone to let drivers know I was on the highway with them!)

Also, I'll post that Groff info for you at the bottom of this comment section.

No worries -- no slight taken. The flashlight in her pocket just disturbs me. Re the way walkers use the flashlight: I never heard it before but it makes sense, esp. on country roads with no sidewalks. The thing about the time of night Sarah was walking tho is that there was likely almost no cars around. This whole thing just grows murkier and murkier. I can almost feel the case growing cold. I have a daughter in her mid-20s and can't imagine just accepting this scenario as an accident if I were in her mother's shoes. Then again, I'm not, so I don't really know. I hope you'll follow up with news when the prosecutor does release the cause of death. Thanks for your vigilance. Marie

I used to walk a girl I was dating home along that same path late at night we were often very drunk which makes it hard for me to see how this was possible. When I first heard what had happened i found it hard to believe. Then the conncetion to the 2000 incident was brought to my attention... While I think it is wrong to start just throwing accusations (more so when people are greiving) The situation warrents hard question that we won't all like and will be very uncofortable but we as a community owe it to the families of those involved to explore every option.

Has her cell phone been found? I think that would go a long way in determining what happened. Whether it was found on her, in the canal (assuming this is not the case since it was actively pinging in the hours after), if it was found on the towpath, at her apartment, or elsewhere, not near the canal . Important piece of the investigation I would think. If she slipped and fell into the canal it would make most sense that the phone was on her or near the canal.

to clarify one thing...not all three of those who died in 'accidents' in/near the canal were walking home to north union st. that is where sarah lived. when dave died, he didn't live in town, to the best of my knowledge. he was going to adam baker's house, which was not the same house that sarah shared with adam. tim lived on s. union st, to the best of my knowledge. (i am a local with ties to all of these people.) also note that not all three were found in the same place. all of that said, i share people's concerns and seriously doubt these were accidents.

Hi Anonymous, I am also a local and find this all to be very disturbing. In regard to the location of the bodies, Sarah and Dave were found within a few dozen yards of each other. As for Tim, they said he was found in Swan Creek, but not where in Swan Creek. Keep in mind that Swan Creek empties into the very same spillway where Dave was found so please let me know if you have information indicating he was found further uphill in the creek. You can contact me privately as well and I would be happy to meet you for a cup of coffee to discuss this if you like. My email is brianfromlambertville at Gmail.com. I have taken a personal interest in this case since it's so close to home, as I would imagine you have to. It just doesn't make any sense.

@ Anonymous Feb 14th: I have 116 North Union Street for Tim Groff; 194 North Union Street for Majoras; and "a house" near Bell's Tavern on North Union Street for Anderson. But I'm not a local, so...

@ Anonymous' Feb 13th - 14th: Thanks for sharing this info.

At this time I invite one or all of my Lambertville guests here to speed up confirmation that a 911 call was made by a resident on Lambert Lane at approximately 2:30 AM on the night/morning Sarah Majoras went missing. It concerned a car "with its lights on" in the parking lot of Jim's Antiques, and a few moments later an unidentified "male" standing beside it.

Thanks for dropping by everybody, and for taking the time to post your valuable feedback!

Re your addresses, there seems to be some overlap. The Majoras home at 194 Union is across the street from Bell's. I read that Baker and Anderson were once roommates elsewhere, and that's why he was staying overnight at Baker's the day he was visiting and died here (at that time Baker's residence was on South Union) .

I found this re Groff:http://www.insurancenewsnet.com/article.aspx?n=1&neID=20060707140.1.34_c13f00041764dfea#.UR5L1I4V8sl

My two cents on this: It was associated with a flood in a low-lying area of town, and it makes sense that he was walking from the Inn of the Hawke (at the end of South Union), in a northerly direction. South Union Crosses Swan Creek before arriving at Bridge Street, and flood conditions in that area are highly unpredictable.Marie

From what I can gather, Groff left the Inn of the Hawke Thursday night, June 29th, going home to 116 N Union. However, the flood began on the 23rd. The river crested in Lambertville the night of the 29th around 7PM so the flood waters were already at their peak so "as water from the river poured into the creek" is not accurate. If anything the creek was emptying into the river again late that night. Union street was ALREADY UNDER WATER up to Ferry or even Bridge street. If Mr. Groff went to the Inn that night it would have been via Main street, which doesn't flood (the very fact that the Inn of the Hawke was open means there wasn't a threat to that part of S. Union) he would have gone around the major flooded areas to his house on N Union that was likely unflooded at the time. And he wasn't reported missing for 5 days. I would think if he drown in the flood waters he would have been swept out into the river as the waters receded.

The front page has a picture of what South Union, where Swan Creek intersects it, looks like when it floods. On Page 13 you can see a flood rate map showing that the Inn of the Hawke (corner of Mt. Hope and S. Union) is not in a Zone A flood zone and neither is all of N. Union.

Welcome back, Brian, and thanks for the info. I tend to refrain from posting data unless I'm 100% sure of it, or else I have a 200% burning-good hunch, so your comment helps to solidify a few budding theories.

About water fatalities in general: While death by drowning is by no means a rare cause of premature death, it isn't that common either. In fact, motor vehicle accidents, murder, and suicide are the leading causes for young men, while drowning itself takes the greatest toll on small children, and typically occurs in private swimming pools.

However, I should also point out that the CDC's annual drown stats pertain to "water-recreational" deaths only. Currently, there is no officially recognized database for non-recreational drownings. Primarily because such events ALMOST NEVER HAPPEN. Especially not in freshwater.

Yes that has been my experience researching this. All of the drowning cases I have found in any canal near here have been boating accidents. And the only non-boating accidents have been in the river and involved a current, or dam, and a poor swimmer, usually a child. It seems that people simply don't "fall in and drown" as Lambertville LE would like us to believe.

Correct. Drowning when not involved in any water-recreational activity is a statistical improbability, particularly in outdoor bodies of freshwater.

I pored over endless stats like those and followed every angle and tangent in investigating the plausibility of the 'Smiley Face' serial murder theory.

This is why I ultimately decided to get involved in THE CASE OF THE DROWNING MEN and continue to devote my efforts to covering the matter--virtually none of the hundreds of Smiley's victims were headed anywhere near a river, lake, pond, etc., and all of these young men disappeared first under extremely suspicious circumstances, days weeks or months before they were finally found drowned.

Initially, I thought Sarah's disappearance and drowning, which is oddly identical to those involving males, may have been a case of mistaken identity because of her uni-sex apparel the night she went missing.

And it may still be, BUT the Lambertville crime scene is a total puzzler, with related events that are both unique and eerily similar. That fragile crime scene is by now thoroughly stomped on as well, by people, by police and by the elements, so.....

I do suspect that Majoras and her friend David were each victims of foul play and I hope they can both get justice. Statistically speaking, though, if a perp isn't apprehended within the first few days then the case and the trail grow cold pronto.

Is there still an official investigation? I am really frustrated that I have been following these "drowning cases " for so long and after each one I think that maybe something will happen. There needs to be a dedicated team to work these cases, much like the innocent project, where professionals look at each case and share their expertise. Why is it so easy to brush these cases aside? In this case it seems that with all of the coincidences, someone in LE would be suspicious!

we should see all the footage the police have. they have it and have stated as much. wouldn't there also be more footage futher along her path whichever way she ultimately went? in the footage, it seems she is determined to go straight home on a cold night. it should be released or obtained somehow. especially if the case is no longer receiving high investigative priority. it is currently a classic coverup. i personally believe someone was waiting for her - it is WAY too suspicious.

"My friend sent an email this past week while we were on vacation and I found a newslink. Just wanted to share about our friend Tim from Lambertville. It is very sad and tragic. He was great guy and one of the nicest people we met during our time trying to make friends in the small town. I got to see him everyday in the coffee shop that I worked in and he always gave us seasonal tours of his beautifully landscaped yard. And of course he was around for the night life, we could get drinks at the Hawk, which is where he was last seen, a block from our old apartment.

'Posted: Friday, 07 July 2006 7:36AM Man Found Dead as Result of Flooding

'LAMBERTVILLE, NEW JERSEY (AP) -- Last week's flooding along the Delaware River in New Jersey has apparently claimed a life after all. Searchers recovered the body of a 39-year-old man from Swan Creek in Lambertville. Timothy Groff was last seen last Thursday after leaving a neighborhood restaurant as water from the river poured into the creek. He was not reported missing until Tuesday. An autopsy shows the landscaper had drowned.

'Preliminary figures released by the Federal Emergency Management Agency estimate the flooding caused about $14 million in damage in the Garden State. FEMA says about $8 million was in Mercer County and $6 million was in Hunterdon County. The White House has yet to respond to the state's request for federal disaster assistance.'"

UPDATE on February 17th: For those of you closely following the Majoras and Lambertville drownings investigation, I've set up a quick anonymous opinion poll on the side bar to the right of the page. This one will only be open for 30 days though, so don't forget to cast your vote before you exit the site today!

And thanks everyone for dropping by, and for your feedback and tips, too--E.R.

They may have decided not to release the findings. However, in these non-recreational drownings a preliminary BAC is often performed right away so to underscore the police theory of "accident" due to drinking...erroneous as such results usually tend to be.

Don't believe that happened in this case though, and more comprehensive toxicology testing can take weeks for a lab to process.

But it's typical for troubling water fatalities like this one to get shoved below radar. That's where officials want them to be.

I have a feeling I know what happened to her. It's not something I can publish here but I will post again if I find out more information this week. Does anyone know for certain that Sarah was Adam's 'girlfriend' as the media portrays? It appears that people are assuming too many things concerning the nature of these relationships in New Hope. There is alot more going on than one might expect.

Wow, That is a bomb-shell dropped! I sure hope there is a follow-up post soon! Regarding the nature of Sarah and Adam's relationship, all I can say is that in the obituary there was something written about her "life partner, Adam". Also, I have read somewhere else, fb possibly(?)that they were quite devoted to each other. Also, they did reside in the same home, one owned by Sarah's mother. It does seem they were involved...romantically.

Note that Adam had moved in with Sarah at her mom's house by the gallery on North Union. A question has to be raised: if he moved into her mom's house with her, the possibility emerges that it was at least partially a roommate situation on his part, just by the nature of the arrangement. not to malign anyone, but what if there was another person in a relationship with baker or had even wanted a relationship with him? The media and others say that they were just a devoted boyfriend & girlfriend. I'm not so sure......

Here's an article that accurately describes what it's like to fall into the canal. It gives a good sense of the current that some people say doesn't exist. This comes up after about the 6th paragraph. Mariehttp://www.nj.com/hunterdon-county-democrat/index.ssf/2013/01/search_for_missing_lambertvill.html

EP- Where did that info come from? I was interested myself what that walk was like at night and it is dark and creepy once you pass the Antique store. I was shocked to see a lady walking the towpath all by herself! I know people want to continue on with their lives but the path is pitch black dark.

Just to assure readers: All who come here may freely share whatever info, theories, and opinions they have about any case that's posted on this site.

You can do so anonymously if you choose, or by real name or anything in between. Short or long, your published comments will go live instantly, as opposed to being moderated, and of the many hundreds contributed so far, only two were ever deleted--both of the spam variety, IMHO.

(Any other deletions were done by the posters themselves for reasons which are unknown and sometimes cause me to scratch my head in puzzlement.)

=)

So, just to sound redundant now, everyone please feel free to participate in any discussion that interests you...or even all of them if you like!

I am a local and the man who did Sarahs initial autopsy works at my sons school. He told the students that Sarah was completely wasted and that he saw no signs of struggle. Everyone in town that we have spoken to all believe it was NOT an accident and she most likely made it to her home that evening.

Yet,another set of lies in all these drownings. My friend's brother was fished out of the Willamette River in Portland Oregon(visit the justice4eric.com site) and the medical examiner stated "I am not sure what to rule this,so,I am just going to rule it an accidental drowning" No disrespect meant,but,really? If it looks like a duck,walks like a duck,quacks like a duck....it's a duck people! THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS COINCIDENCE.

The Doctor was in town here doing the initial autopsy and he was a guest at my sons school (not sure if he is a permanent fixture). As far as I know the info. on Sarah was already released at that time to the public. The kids were having a group discussion relevant to what they are studying. He did not tell the class she was "wasted" but along those lines and they all have a great rapport with this Doctor. I did casually know Sarah and I am pretty certain that circle of people are into drugs and not just the light stuff, this town parties hard! The drug thing is pretty obvious around here and people dont really discuss it too often--especially with outsiders (why would they?). The tourist will not come and patronize if afraid

You do realize that Lambertville is like 5 min away from Trenton, right? That should be nuff said. If you drive down certain streets, you literally have 5 different crack heads running at your car, yelling names of drugs, trying to be the first to get to your window. This area definitely has an underground heroin epidemic thats been going on for over 10 years. Probably due to being stuck between 2 major distribution hubs, philly and trenton.

Im not saying SM was involved with heroin. Just pointing out that its very easy to obtain in this area.

Wow! Are you saying that the medical examiner works at your son's school? In what capacity if you don't mind me asking? Are we talking college here? I am amazed that he would share this type of info like that! Very interesting though! Wouldn't it make sense that if she was wasted an accident would be more likely then if she wasn't?

I am new to posting on any discussion thread but I grew up in Lambertville until the heinous crime of arson was committed against my family. Some local teenagers (almost 18 at the time) burned our house to the ground. The cover up by the LE at the time and also the locals in the town was unbelievable and the teens were never charged. I will add that the parents of these kids got them an attorney before arson was even discovered to be the cause. Hearing them brag to locals and much evidence was.. covered up. I can only say that with karma the ball is always round. My purpose in telling this story is just to say that this town is a small town with a history of hush hush LE. Not saying that LE isn't doing their job....just sayin. Way too many connections to this case and DAcase to be coincidence or just bad luck.I believe she would not have walked the towpath that night....why would she? And I believe she made it home that night unfortunately for her.

The link with the 'other' case, when Dave Anderson drowned 12 years ago, is that they both left bars late at night, alone and drunk. and then walked the dark towpath (which is part of the State Park, thus dark and not meant for walking at night, though people do at their own risk) instead of the well-lit street. And sad as this is, frankly, the fact that in twelve years, only two people have drowned in the canal, is rather amazing considering hundreds and hundreds of people walk and bike along that path every weekend. THe other common link? Their friends let them leave the bar in New Hope alone and drunk. Why did they let Sarah leave alone at 2am on a very cold night? I appreciate that people have an interest in this sad case, but it's frustrating reading conjectures about murderers on the loose from people who don't know the landscape or understand just how much water (and bars) is around us in Lambertville.

Is it "frustrating reading conjectures about murderers on the loose" ? Here is an idea, stop coming to crime investigation websites and you won't have to read about it, And go read my response to you on the blinkoncrime site, Ritchie.

A friend of mine in New Hope who was drinking with Sarah at J&P on the night of her disappearance mentioned that Sarah M. only had one or two drinks that night; she was a responsible person; and that she always walked the canal towpath to her house. I asked him if he was sure about the towpath and he gave affirmation that she walked it each time. He further affirmed by saying that he also walked the towpath himself each night to his house in Lambertville from New Hope with no problems. There have been few (if any) criminal incidents reported along the towpath at night. If a determined stalker-type was up to mischief, they could have waited for her along the darker parts of the path unnoticed. If foul play did occur, Sarah was not expecting it and seemingly not aware of any potential enemies as she did not alter her route, had no one go with her, didn't get a ride etc. ---

one of her friends simply stated that she took the tow path home each night. have to ask him again and ask how he knows that. he knew her well and was one of the last people to see her alive at J/P - they were drinking together that night. i'll just ask again.

I have to admit, I walk the paths at night often. Rethinking that now! IF she fell in, the bottom of the canal is really mucky, so even if the water wasn't very deep, it seems likely that it would have been difficult to get out. Maybe that's how one boot came off? Trying to pull her feet out of the muck? I know from a terrifying family experience that ice cold water is a really quick-acting danger.my sister fell into what we thought was a frozen pond when we were teens and barely made it out alive. She says that when she hit the cold water, the wind was totally knocked out her --she thought she was screaming but couldn't make a sound. Hypothermia sets it super fast.

Sarah Majoras' death ruled accidental; high level of alcohol found in ...The Medical Examiner has ruled that the cause of death was drowning and the manner was accidental.www.nj.com/.../index.../sarah_majoras_death_ruled_acci.html

Autopsy: Sarah Majoras had 'high level of alcohol' in her system ...Popular New Hope bartender Sarah Majoras was intoxicated when she slipped into the Delaware & Raritan Canal in Lambertville and died in January, officials ...www.phillyburbs.com/.../article_a9d6e790-fc24-52f0-a28b-d...

Sarah Majoras' death accidental; she had high level of alcohol in her ...Authorities have previously said that foul play was not suspected, but an official cause and manner of death was pending the county medical examiner's ...www.lehighvalleylive.com/.../sarah_majoras_death_accidental....

Toxicology Results Released in Sarah Majoras DeathIt was a tragic accident that killed 39-year-old Sarah Majoras, the Lambertville woman whose body was found in a local canal days after she went missing in late.nj1015.com/toxicology-results-released-in-sarah-majoras-death/

Sarah Majoras, Lambertville bartender, accidentally drowned ...Officials have closed the case on the death of a New Jersey woman who went missing after leaving a bar in Bucks County in January.www.wfmz.com/news/news-regional.../-/index.html

Being friends with someone who knew Sarah pretty well and was drinking with her the very night of her disappearance, he told me repeatedly that she was not visibly drunk that night. He said she had 'one or two' drinks and he was with her at J/P most of the night. Many of her friends are going to be upset that they are saying she was 'drunk' and just slipped in. Only the precise point level of b.a.c. will determine even the possibility of just falling in. We should see the tox report before going any further.

Yes, I agree with you! The precise point level of b.a.c would be a very helpful thing to know! One thing I wanted to bring up to you is, it was said that she was a Triumph Brewing Co. that night to see the band, Brother Eye. It would have been after that, that she would have been at J&P's having drinks with your friend, right? So, he only saw her have one or two there. Did anyone see how many she had at Triumph that night? I'm thinking that if she had a few there, that could have made all the difference.

True. I will ask him this weekend in New Hope if he knows anything else; he certainly might. There are several things to consider regarding her b.a.c. level:

1. The prosecutor has so far refused to release her b.a.c. level as well as the surveillance footage. Why?

2. The police generally say that when a person approaches .08 BAC they can no longer walk a straight line, as in field sobriety tests. However, look at the still shots taken from the surveillance footage. Sarah is seen walking across Bridge St and seems to be walking a perfectly straight line within the crosswalk. Sober enough for the crosswalk, but too drunk for the towpath?

3. (a) If she did have some drinks at Triumph first, that would certainly explain a 'high bac level'. But what is the likelihood that Sarah would then proceed to get fully intoxicated at her place of business? (b) Wouldn't her friends or colleagues (per policy?) not arrange a ride home for her if she was visibly drunk? (c) She is seen walking past what appears to be a police vehicle on Bridge St. There is a strong probability that if she appeared very intoxicated (at 2:15am, no less) the police officer would have stepped out of his cruiser and approached her and at least have spoken to her.

Is prosecutor Kearns suggesting to us that Sarah was intoxicated so much so (>.08) that she could not even walk a straight line? or walked too close to the canal and slipped in? It sounds better than saying that she just slipped on an icy patch and fell 4 - 5 feet sideways into the icy water.

One more note, I happen to know an elected state official (a friend) who confided to me socially that while he believes she was drunk, that several Lambertville police officers believe it was foul play.

hmmm. I've been told by another Lambertville official that her BAC was 3x the legal limit and they don't think foul play was involved. The towpath that she in all likelihood took (right by Blue Raccoon) does have a decline at the start, from the direction she would have been walking, so it seems possible that if she slipped, it would have acted like a chute into the canal. Even NOT with alcohol, that part would be slippery for someone. Did anyone offer to walk her home? Or get her a cab? Even if she wasn't visibly drunk, it was late to let her walk home alone...

Rox,I emailed the I-TEAM yesterday. Apparently,and correct me if I am wrong,this is the group that is going to start investigating all these drownings? Maybe more of the family's and friend's of the victims should? That way they will be more aware of the other cluster of cases? Julie

Law enforcement does not have a good record when it comes to investigating these types of cases so them saying they found no injuries really means nothing ,because they are not taken as seriously as stabbings and shootings. Not even in the Steiner case ,when they suspected foul play in the first place ,because the screen was cut open.

The Joe Clark murders are cases any one that wants to know how drownings are really investigated should be aware of.

An autopsy showed no traumatic injuries on Joe Clarks victims.One of his victims was named Steiner and his death was attributed to drowning.

A later victim ,Thad Phillips was able to call the police.

After the police rescued Thad, he told them that Joe had admitted to killing Chris Steiner. This came as a surprise, since the pathologist who had examined Steiner at the time had found no sign of an injury. Nevertheless, the case had been mysterious and the body had been bloated from being in the water; the pathologist could have overlooked something. Then investigators learned that no X-rays had been taken.

There was only one way to discover whether Chris Steiner had been subjected to the same bizarre treatment that Thad had endured, and thus to link the two crimes to a single perpetrator: They had to exhume Chris Steiner’s remains. In other words, they had to reopen his grave, remove the casket in which he lay, open it up, and remove the body for a closer examination.

Once this was done, the forensic pathologist went over the small body once again, and this time, armed with more information, he identified four separate breaks in Chris Steiner’s legs. It was apparent that had the boy been thrown into the water in this condition, he could not have used his legs to swim and could easily have drowned—as he actually did. .

Your post and info is spot on, Tennessee. Anyone familiar with forensics knows that a body of water is the ideal place to cover up crimes.

Therefore the first thought of investigators should naturally be "Was this a murder?" As opposed to "Oh look, another drowning has just occurred." Especially in these cases where the victims weren't engaged in any water-recreational activities whatsoever, and most if not all weren't even headed to the waterfront.

Injuries, no injuries--regardless--authorities are always pronouncing the same cause and manner of death in these suspicious cases: accidental drowning.

Pretty soon they'll be saying the same thing when they fish young men out of lakes and rivers who are missing their heads or riddled with bullet holes!

If, as you suggest, it was murder, and someone wanted to get rid of a body, why would someone use the canal, instead of the Delaware River, which is right there too? There are a numerous access road to the river with no surveillance whatsoever, unlike the canal which runs right through the middle of town.

Hello again ER,I used to call both towns charming and enjoyed visiting. Now that I know what type of people live in those towns I will not visit nor will my friends. I will not do business with people that cover up murder? Sarah and Dave were both murdered by someone they knew. The people they called friends were sheep in wolves clothing. True friends tell the truth no matter what it cost them. “Secrets” become gossip somewhere along the way. When gossip reaches the wrong ears it leads to unanswered questions and that is when the law steps in. I have never known anyone who could keep a secret forever. Guilt on the other hand weighs you down. Have any of you considered the fact that Sarah and Dave will never rest in peace until the person or persons responsible for their deaths are punished. They will continue to haunt and stay very close to those chosen few they once called friends. Those responsible will be looking over their shoulders, that I am sure of. What they need is the State Police and FBI to look very close at both towns. By the way, who is running the drugs across state lines? That is a federal offense. Your “Secrets” will become known. I will be waiting to read the headlines about how two towns and their “clicks” fell from grace.

E.R...I am the one regarding the justice4eric.com sight,and I am now becoming obsessed with this case! Are you kidding me? This lovely woman,sarah,from what I've read and newsclips I have seen,was a very bright,extraordinary woman. So what happen's now? Case closed? Period? The end????????? This is nuts!!!!!!! It's like we live in nazi germany...the powerful people,no matter how dishonest,win,and the not so powerful people,that are honest and filled with integrity,are expendable! That's it? Case closed? You might want to check out finding mathew mcconell-hegland...he is that last victim,to have gone missing after leaving a portland bar...3 months ago....I am not grasping this? It is,and has been happening everywhere? We are just supposed to accept,vent on a web-site and go on??????? My name is Julie,I do not know how to work the thingy that says comment as.....I am so angry about Eric and something about this sarah gal has really got me going! case closed?!?!?!?!

The newspaper made an Open Public Records Act request of the prosecutor's office, presumably for the autopsy report. Go Trentonian!

The prosecutor appears to be hedging ... he says "We speak conditionally for a reason because we don’t know for a 100 percent on these things.” Not sure what it means, but I think we should all stay tuned ...

WOOHOO--commonsense and crime stats rule at last--the details of this case (and the victims) have been nagging me, so thanks for the heads up!

Here's what I'll do then: Since your update comes from a recent "mainstream" news source, that allows me to cover this case for the GatherNews agency now. Therefore I'll try to get that accompished by tomorrow.

However, there's a 72 hour limit on sourcing and two sources are generally preferred, so if you can rummage up any more from today or tomorrow morning then post the link/s here and I'll cite them in the forthcoming article. Note that these don't have to be Associated Press or UPI, just a dependable news network.

GatherNews itself boasts a large readership which this otherwise local news item needs now in order to keep the pressure on investigators. If the piece is accepted by my managing editor then I'll post a link here (or in a new blog-post) Thereafter, all who are interested in the Lambertville Drownings should just blitz the piece via Facebook and Twitter so as many people become aware of the matter as possible.

Okay, keep them coming and also see what can be done about encouraging a local mainstream-affiliate news agency to regularly cover this case. Because if they will I can continue to do so for GatherNews IF I have legitimate sourcing. (1000 word limit, unfortunately)

Now, I did put through a piece last night--apologies for the rush job but I had to because that 72-hour source you gave was about to expire. So if you click on my name in this comment you can find the article and share it.

FYI: The editor returned the first draft because she wanted more commentary and analysis, which brings up the next problem with keeping this puzzling and unsolved case in the press: It hasn't advanced to the working-theories stage yet!

That was the main reason I was (uncharacteristically) restrained with my analysis in the first place, even in the second draft which was finally approved for pubbing, so...

We all agree that something isn't meeting the eye in the Majoras and Anderson twin drownings, but we're all stumped by them too apparently. Nevertheless, we must try to push into the debate stage now and see if the clues that are already out there suggest accidents, suicides, or murders. Then I can provide more in depth commentaries in future pieces for other agencies.

Goals:

1. More local coverage even if sporadic = more ability on my part to channel this case to other media outlets;2. Intelligent hypothesizing = my ability to then compose quality content that readers who've never heard of the Majoras/Anderson deaths, or even Lambertville itself, will be interested in reading.

I'll do a separate post today for the newest Majoras article, but I'm already running a little bit behind schedule.

Again, thanks for your news tip. This one is a puzzler that's fer certain and needs more attention than it's getting--E.R.

There's plenty of useful thinking (and disagreement) about all this on Websleuths.com. The SM forum has four threads, the 4th of which is still open. I'll paste a link to the first one here. You can find links to the others at the bottom of the 1st thread page. I read and liked your post. Keep up the good fight.

E.R., have you seen the article I've posted a link to below? Can you translate?

(1) For example. WTF does this mean:When asked about the likelihood of somebody pushing her into the canal with one shove, Chmara, who has board certifications in anatomic, clinical and forensic pathology responded, “It’s possible that a green Martian pushed her into the water.”

Is he saying that someone would have had to "beam" her into the water?! Or that it's possible, but in his opinion no one was around?! Very glib ...

(2) And if she had a BAC this high, how on earth was she able to walk from J&Ps to Coryell St. in L'vil?

I have seen some info on raised BAC levels in drowning victims. I am also wondering, is there something a person can ingest (or be poisoned with) -- other than beer/wine/alcohol -- that could contribute to high BAC?

Anonymous-I'm with you, what kind of snarky a-hole says something like that? As if autopsies are infallible and are never wrong. She also "had small abrasions to the tip of her nose, upper and lower lips, left jaw and left neck" which this imbecile atributes to her being dragged along the bottom of the canal. In my opinion the same injuries could have been incurred from being dragged down the tow path.

Plus I wanted to do a piece using this recent link you posted while it was stll a "fresh" source. (Really couldn't resist, what with the aliens now playing such a pivotal role in this case!)

Anyway, if you click on my name in this specific comment it should take you to the article now published on GatherNews. It's titled: SARAH MAJORAS DROWNING: "IT'S POSSIBLE A GREEN MARTIAN PUSHED HER" CORONER CLAIMS

(Just share it - I'll do a separate post here on Killing Killers with a link to it tomorrow maybe.)

FYI, I'm not sure if it's your misconception or if your saying it's the coroner's, but the bridge across the river (the one she crossed from NH to L'vil, on video, which allegedly shows her "stumbling" -- tho we've only seen stills of this), is not the same bridge "she's said to have accidentally plummeted from." She's said to have fallen, from or near, a much smaller bridge on Coryell St., which crosses the canal.

The martian comment was just plain STUPID, IMO. I'm so glad you went for that. So many questions ...

Soooo... another body is pulled from the canal in Lambertville. Kenneth Muzychko a 32 y/o Marine Corp vet was found floating on Friday May 2nd. http://www.nj.com/hunterdon-county-democrat/index.ssf/2014/05/body_in_lambertville_canal_was.htmlOnce again, officials state "There do not appear to be any suspicious circumstances at this time." ...again.

CASE #14001434 – On Friday, March 14, 2014 at 1:15 a.m. SPO Matthew Bast arrested Kenneth Muzychko, age 32, of Lambertville on Lincoln Avenue. Muzychko had an active warrant out of Hillside Municipal Court for $750. Muzychko was released by Hillside authority’s ror.

Here's a couple of others:CASE #14000494 - On January 29, 2014 at 1:34 p.m. Det Michael Miloszar arrested Kenneth Muzychko, age 32, of Lambertville at his residence on three outstanding warrants totaling $2,503. Muzychko was turned over to Hopewell Township police.

At about 5:42 p.m. Jan. 11, police went to the area of Sheridan Park on York Street upon a report of an intoxicated male. Police said Kenneth Muzychko 32, of Lambertville was found intoxicated within the park.

Police said Mr. Muzychko was in possession of a near-empty bottle of vodka, as well as drug paraphernalia (glass pipe). He was transported to the Hunterdon Medical Center for treatment.Mr. Muzychko was charged with being in possession of an open container of alcohol in public, as well as possession of drug paraphernalia. Sgt. Robert Brown is investigating.

He has other arrests too. I guess he wasn't doing very well after he left the military.Of course, he would be a perfect victim for a murderer as he seems to have had alcohol and drug problems. It could be easily written off as an accident.

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CRIME POLL RESULTS:

"Do you think Sarah Majoras was murdered and then dumped into the canal?" VOTING PERIOD: February 17, 2013 to March 20, 2013. Approximately 88% of voters responded YES; 3% NO; 9% MAYBE.

CRIME POLL RESULTS:

"Is it okay that Obama and the NSA are spying on you?" VOTING PERIOD: June 13, 2013 to June 23, 2013. Approximately 89% of voters responded NO and 11% YES.

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